Nintendo turns 25

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Nintendo created an empire with hit systems including the Nintendo, the Game Boy, the Super Nintendo, the Nintendo 64, the GameCube, the Nintendo DS, the Wii and the Virtual Boy (maybe not so much that last one).

They defeated long time rivals Sega and, when faced with new competition from Microsoft and Sony, decided to play an entirely different game with the Wii. It's a system that doesn't try to have the best graphics or play to hardcore gamers, but changed the way people interact with games; Microsoft and Sony are doing their best to imitate the Wii with various peripherals, but these have yet to catch on.

I remember tearing open the big box on an '80s Christmas morning and getting the deluxe Nintendo set, with a mind-blowing three whole games, as well as a gun and a robot. (The robot would not turn out to be a gaming must have.)

I would go on to get a zillion games, ranging from awesome to who-greenlighted-this, as well as peripherals that mostly fell in that latter category. I can't believe I once wore one of these on my head. (Although I still wouldn't mind putting on a Power Glove once again.)